Player One Piece
by Preposte
Summary: Introducing the Gēmā Gēmā no Mi: The Alabasta Revolutionaries happen upon a surprising treasure in their latest raid. A devil fruit unlike any they've ever heard of. Kohza hopes that it will provide the edge they need to save the people of Alabasta from the Royalists. (Gamer!Kohza)
1. Chapter 1 - The Gēmā Gēmā no Mi

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece. I don't even own Two Pieces. It's all quite depressing.

**PLAYER ONE PIECE  
Chapter 1 - The ****Gēmā** **Gēmā** **no Mi**

_The Alabasta Revolutionaries happen upon a surprising treasure in their latest raid. A devil fruit unlike any they've ever heard of. As their leader, Kohza is chosen to eat the mysterious fruit and lead them to victory over the Royalist forces. (Gamer!Kohza)_

**-=oOo=-**

The sword swept past his head with a whistle that made his heart jump. Kohza took a step back and used that momentum to pull his greatsword from his right hip and across his body, opening a gash through the breastplate of the caravan guard opposite him. A kick to the man's chest had him sprawled out on the ground and Kohza ran a gloved hand through his short blonde hair and moved on to the next fighter.

Within minutes the only people left standing amidst the lonely patch of desert were rebels. Most of whom had been his friends for years. Kohza hated this part. A year ago, they all had jobs, or at least were looking. He'd been helping at the family farm in Yuba, even as every year saw fewer crops making it to maturity. Anything was better than that excruciatingly slow death, but watching other men bleed out onto the sand wasn't much to compare it to.

He brushed his fingers over a line of blood along the side on his white t-shirt, just under his right arm. No pain or extra bleeding, so it wasn't his own. He tugged at the edge of his maroon trench coat to cover the stain.

"Everyone is accounted for, commander. Okame got hit in the head, but she'll be fine in the morning."

Kohza picked up his fallen sunglasses from the sand underfoot and turned to respond to Erik. "Are the civilians alright?"

The other man nodded, his black top hat bobbing while the medals on his light purple jacket jingled. "Yeah, they're fine. Mostly. Should we let 'em go now or bring 'em back to camp for a week so the royals don't figure out where we are?"

"Send them home. We've been pushing our luck as it is. When we get back, we'll pack everything up and move on to the next rendezvous point. I think they're starting to catch-"

"Sir!" A boy ran up to the pair panting heavily. "Sir!"

"What is it… boy?" Kohza responded more gruffly than intended. For the life of him, he couldn't remember the boy's name. They had several running through camp as messengers, but it was sometimes hard to tell them apart.

"Uh, the scavengers, sir. They found something in one of the wagons they said you'd want to see."

That had his attention. They'd been hitting royalist caravans in this region for a week already, but hadn't come up with any of the firearms and ammunition that his spies had assured him would be here. It was usually food, which he wasn't going to complain about, but none of the army stores they were desperate for. Both to bolster their own forces and to deprive their enemy. He gave a quick nod to the boy and followed him back to the third wagon from the lead.

It didn't look like anything special. Oak plank walls, but none of the metal reinforcing the royal army liked to put on their transports.

"Doesn't look like anything special." Erik added helpfully as he jogged up behind him.

One of the scavengers, another boy only a bit older than the messenger climbed out of the back door with a small box in his hands, cradled delicately as if he was carrying his own newborn. When he glanced up to see the revolutionary forces commander he silently, if a bit reluctantly, held the box out to him.

Kohza admitted that his curiosity was running wild at this point. Such a small box. Was it jewels? The crown maybe? He took the box from the scavenger and gently lifted the hinged lid. Oh my.

Cushioned on purple velvet sat the oddest eggplant he'd ever seen. The skin was black and covered with short lines and circles in bright, neon green. It took a moment for his mind to catch up to what he was holding in his hand.

Erik put a hand on his shoulder. "Is that…?" Clearly the awe was contagious.

Kohza snapped the lid closed. "Gather the men, we'll pulling out. Now." He carried the box back to his camel and packed it carefully in his saddlebag. He didn't know how fragile they were, but he couldn't take any chances. This discovery could change the course of the war. The revolution found a devil fruit.

**-=oOo=-**

Kohza pushed the tent flap aside and took shelter in the dark tent that acted as their command center. Erik had already gathered the other "leaders", if you could call them that. Okame sat on a stool with a bandage wrapped around her head, black hair poking out at odd angles, looking uncomfortable, but at least her large brown eyes were still sharp. Fortunately she was tall enough to get a clear view over the table from that position. Kebi stood opposite him, wiping the dried blood off his hands so that he could rub the heel of his palms against the bags under his eyes. Running the rebel infirmary was taking its toll on the young man.

Farafra stooped and pushed his massive frame into the tent right behind him, taking up position at his right without saying a word. The big man was effectively a mute since he lost his tongue to a bandit, but there wasn't anyone Kohza knew who was half so reliable. Truth be told, Farafra had the look of a thug, with a jutting jaw, wild hair, and muscles like cords of steel wrapped in a tiger-striped cloak, but a gentle nature better suited to protect than attack. These were his childhood friends. Aside from Erik, they'd been founding members of the Suna Suna Clan, back when they were kids, and the man with the medals fit in as if he'd been there all along. How were they in charge of the People's revolution? How was he? The world was mad.

Without a word, Kohza set the box on the table and opened the lid. Those who hadn't seen it yet gave a sharp intake of breath. "Kebi, is this what I think it is?"

The shortish man in the red bandana stared open-mouth for a moment. "Um, well I'm no expert."

"None of us are, but you have the best education. What's your best guess?"

"Uh, if I had to guess… then yeah. That does appear to be a devil fruit. And you just FOUND it in a random caravan? No special guards or anything?" Kebi's incredulous voice seemed to sum up the feelings of everyone present.

"I don't think this was in royal hands. Most of the wagons were civilian merchants. Only a small royal army escort. Probably headed for the black market."

Okame was standing at this point, staring at the box's contents. "Speaking of which… where this came from isn't nearly as important as where it's going. If it was headed to the black market in Alubarna, then there is probably already a buyer there. This would sell for hundreds of millions of Beli!"

Farafra grunted as he raised his right hand in a fist and pounded it firmly into the palm of his left with a smack.

No one responded while Kebi simply nodded at the big man. "Yeah, we can't forget that the devil fruit is a weapon too. And we're in need of weapons." While no one outright said anything, they'd all had that thought. Only a few of them had ever spent much time at sea, so the prospect for giving up the ability to swim for the ability to compete with monsters like the King's guards, Pell and Chaka, was very tempting.

Kohza cleared his throat. "If we sell the fruit, the proceeds go to everyone in the revolution. Medicine for the infirmary..." Kebi's eyes lit up at that. "And extra horses or camels, so we can go back to switching them out to keep them healthy. If one person eats the fruit, how could we even decide who it should be?"

Kebi chuckled, unintentionally drawing everyone's attention. "Er… well, isn't that obvious? I mean, Kohza man. You're the best fighter we have, and you're our leader. You with a devil fruit? We could really win this thing! Not just hitting caravans and hiding until we get backed into a corner."

"Bah… and here was I just dreaming about the part where I use my powers to get all the honeys to fall in love with me!" Erik slapped his commander's back with a big grin on his face.

Kohza was startled by the admissions, but Farafra put his own massive hand on his old friend's shoulder and gave him a serious nod.

Okame just rolled her eyes when Kohza looked her way. "If we're not gonna sell this thing, then of course you're gonna eat it. You're the commander, dummy!" Kohza gave a self-deprecating grin and looked back down at the mysterious fruit.

"Wait, before you bite in, you should know that devil fruit abilities range widely. Some are powerful, like Crocodile's sand abilities, but I've heard of other powers that are more trouble than they're worth. Since none of us recognize this particular fruit, it'd be a crap shoot." Okame huffed at Kebi's uncanny ability to ruin the moment. "Y'know, full disclosure and all."

Kohza smirked and responded, "Well, we won't know 'til we do it. If I melt into a puddle, just promise to hold a nice service for me." Erik blanched at that, seeming much less eager to imagine it was him eating the fruit all of a sudden. Kohza reached out and gently plucked the not-eggplant from the box and held it in front of him. It was hard not to treat this as some kind of formal ceremony, so he did what he always did when he was about to overthink something. He just did it.

Oh my god! "Plbegght! Plehg! Oh god, that is disgusting! I don't think I've ever eaten something so foul." Kohza was trying to wipe any remnants off his tongue to the amusement of the comrades. "Is it supposed to be that nasty?"

Kebi just shrugged in response. "I don't think I've ever read any reports of the actual eating process. Actually, speaking of that, we should probably run some tests in the infirmary."

Kohza nodded in return, but didn't say a word, stilling trying to keep his lunch down.

Okame huffed again. "Well, he doesn't seem to be mutating or anything right now. Promise you'll call me if he starts changing into something hideous. Or funny." And with that, she pushed aside the tent flap and left. Erik and Farafra left shortly thereafter when Kebi sat Kohza down to check his heart rate.

"So… how's the family?" Kebi's humor was an acquired taste. "I'm just kiddin'. So, your heart sounds fine. Do you feel anything unusual?"

"My taste buds want to die, but otherwise I feel surprisingly good."

"Well, that sounds like a good sign. Here, put this under your tongue." With that, Kebi put a thermometer in his commanders mouth. "Alright, so I'm not sure what we're supposed to be looking for, but I think you should be on the lookout for even little things. Like itchiness. Does anything itch?"

Kohza gave the almost-doctor a deadpan look with the thermometer sticking out between his lips.

"Yes? No?... Okay, maybe I'll check again later." Kebi pulled out the thermometer and hummed to himself as he whipped off the saliva and checked the level. "Looks fine. Okay, we're gonna play it safe, so no meat or alcohol until we start seeing what kind of changes are happening. Uh, Kohza? Are you listening?"

No he wasn't. Kohza had his eyes glued to a spot a few inches above his friend's head.

"What?"

"I think I found something unusual. Honestly, this reminds me of when we took those mushrooms when we were kids. There are some bright green words floating above your head."

"Um… okay, I think we're officially out of my area of expertise. So… what's it say?"

Kohza reached up to point at the words as he read them. "Alabasta Revolutionary, Doctor, Kebi, L-V-8."

"... Seriously? Oookay. How about this?" Kebi held up a hand mirror angled so Kohza could see above his own head.

It took a moment for Kohza to work his way through the text backwards. "The Gamer, Kohza Jakkaru, L-V-14."

"Huh, okay, that's our first clue. My description was accurate, so if we assume that it's true for you too, then your power thinks you're a Gamer. Oh, hey! I bet that's what the L-V stands for. You're level 14 and I'm level 8 according to your new power. Wait... Only level 14? But you're the strongest fighter we have! How strong do people get?"

"What do you mean?" Kohza clearly hadn't followed all of that.

"Didn't you play any video games as a kid?"

"Sure, I played that one with the monkey, and that other one with the vampire hunter. Been a long time though."

Kebi sat there with his mouth open for a moment. "Okay, so teaching someone about video games in the middle of a civil war is a little trippy. Anyway, so if we both have levels, then it sounds a bit like a role playing game. So we should check to see if other RPG things are true. Try saying 'Character'."

With a shrug, Kohza followed along. "Alright, character- Whoa!"

**[Character Menu]**

**Name: Kohza Jakkaru  
Titles: [The Gamer], Leader of the Alabasta Revolution, Leader of the Suna Suna Clan  
Level: 14**

**STR: 20  
VIT: 23  
DEX: 15  
INT: 11  
WIS: 6  
LUK: 10  
Points: 25**

**Money: 280 Beli**

"What? What do you see? Actually, you know what? Try writing it down." Kebi scrambled around until he found a pencil and some blank paper.

Kohza copied down everything from the… whatever it was floating in front of him. When he was done, he pushed it across the table and sat back onto the stool Okame had been using. "So what's all that supposed to mean?"

"Hmm..." Kebi studied what he'd written down. "Were there any buttons? Maybe arrows by these numbers here?"

"Oh, yeah, there they are. Little up arrows. Am I supposed to push them?" He reached up to see if he could push one of the arrows, but Kebi grabbed his wrist.

"Yeah, but hold off on that for a second. So do you know what those acronyms mean?"

Kohza read over the words again. "Some, I think. S-T-R sounds like strength. And it feels a little weird that it knows exactly how many Beli I have."

"Guess it doesn't pay very well to lead a revolution." Kebi snickered at the helpless grin Kohza returned. "Anyway, S-T-R is strength. V-I-T is vitality, which is like how good you are at taking a hit. D-E-X is dexterity. That's kind of like how fast you are, but really more like coordination. Then I-N-T is intelligence, W-I-S is wisdom, and L-U-K is luck. Different games treat those things differently, but since this is different, they're probably more literal."

"Wait, so this makes me look like a musclehead!"

"Eh… I guess a little. It's alright though, 'cause I think we can fix it. Try tapping the arrow next to WIS."

As Kohza's finger came in contact with the button, the solidity of the window surprised him. In response, the number jumped from 6 to 7 and the number next to Points dropped to 24. "So the points are what I have to spend? How do I get more?"

"My guess is leveling up. We'll have to see how many you get when you reach level 15. For now, focus on INT and WIS. We still don't know what effect this stuff will have on the real world, but I don't want to follow a meathead." Kebi ducked the hand coming up behind the back of his head and chuckled.

Kohza tapped the arrows next to INT and WIS several more times a piece, then a few times on DEX when it started looking low.

**[Character Menu]**

**Name: Kohza Jakkaru  
Titles: [The Gamer], Leader of the Alabasta Revolution, Leader of the Suna Suna Clan  
Level: 14**

**STR: 20  
VIT: 23  
DEX: 21  
INT: 18  
WIS: 18  
LUK: 10  
Points: 0**

**Money: 280 Beli**

"Okay, that looks better. ... Damnit!" Kohza cursed and pinched the bridge of his nose.

Kebi blinked at the commander. "What?"

"Well, we wanted to figure out what effect the fruit had on the real world. How the hell are we going to test an increase in intelligence and wisdom?"

"Uh… good point? Okay, well then… I guess we'll just have to get you leveled up then."

Kohza nodded absently. Now that they'd been able to make some sense of the new find, he couldn't help but start thinking about his other obligations. Half of his comrades were busy packing up the camp so they could move to a new location. The prospect of learning about his new powers was much more interesting when he thought he'd be able to breathe fire or fly. "Later. First we get this tent broken down so we don't hold up the tear down. We'll discuss this further when we reach Katorea."

"Sure thing, commander." Kebi responded in a yawn, apparently remembering how tired he was as the tent flap fell back into place from Kohza's departure.

**-=oOo=-**

Thoughts whirled around his head as he meandered through the busy camp. Everywhere around him were his comrades, but each one had a title, a name, and a level above their heads. On a theoretical level, the life as a video game idea sounded kind of fun, but these were people who bled with him for their cause. To stop the king from stealing the rain from the people of Alabasta. Seeing the labels made him a little uneasy.

**[Alabasta Revolutionary]  
Natto Pan, LV4**

He'd known Natto since they were kids. It seemed wrong to label him like that. He hoped this new power didn't make him forget that. It also pointed out that some of his men needed better training. Really? Only level 4? As he walked, he skimmed over the labels of dozens more of his comrades. Some of the labels had been slightly different. Like Kebi's saying he was a doctor, but that one seemed odd.

**[?]  
Mr. Love, LV7**

What was that? He scanned the group of rebels packing up gear and everyone else had some variation of the same title. Why was this guy different?

Trust your gut.

As he took a step toward this 'Mr. Love', a window popped up in front of him. He nearly yelped in surprise and was glad he wouldn't humiliate himself front of men who followed him into battle.

**[Quest Alert]**

**Title: Unraveling the Conspiracy  
Description: Investigate a suspicious member of the rebel army.  
Reward: 500xp, Unlock Major Questline**

**[Accept] or [Reject]?**

Well, if he didn't have a good reason before, he certainly did now. That sounded all kinds of ominous.

Here goes...

"You there!" Kohza called out to the apparent 'Mr. Love' as he was handing bundles up to another man on a wagon. "Come here for a moment!"

The man pantomimed back, "Who, me?"

Kohza simply nodded in return and waited as the man hesitantly walked over. "Don't worry, I only have a couple questions, although, I seem to have forgotten your name. I apologize. You are…"

The man seemed much more comfortable as the conversation didn't seem hostile. "Korobi, sir. I'm Korobi Bakeru."

"Right, Korobi-san. I'm concerned that out movements might be reaching the wrong ears. Do you think we might have a mole?"

The man's eyes went wide as saucers, and a moment later he'd pulled a knife out of his sleeve and lunged at Kohza. While the suddenness of the attack surprised him more than he'd like to admit, he was grateful that his body seemed to work on autopilot in parrying the thrust. Kohza grabbed the man's wrist and wrung the life out of it. Shouts rang out around him and more than one of his comrades came closer to wrestle the man to the ground. Seeing the situation turn so completely against him, 'Korobi' dropped the knife, slipped out of the hold and took off across the sand.

Right into the steel arm of the ever-intimidating Farafra. The man was flat on his back and dazed as the big man placed a heavy foot on his chest.

"Wait! I need information from him!" Kohza pulled the ring of men apart to make his way to the captured man's side. "Alright, you're going to tell us what we want to know Korobi-san. Or would you prefer 'Mr. Love'?"

**-=The next day at Katorea, an oasis north of Nanohana=-**

Okame paced back and forth in front of the chair in the dimly lit tent. It was a hassle to stuff bundles of random gear into all the places where the afternoon sun could seep through, but she insisted that it was important. Kohza sat in the shadows at the edge of the tent. No one was quite sure what to make of the revelation about his powers, but the knife thrust had lent a lot of credibility to his claim. Now they just needed to get some real answers.

The man tied to the chair in the center of the room had certainly seen better days. They had assured him that speaking openly would have different results, but the man had demanded proof. Well, not in so many words, but he'd refused to talk. Okame was a beanpole, but man could she hit hard. The side of his face was already bruising.

"Alright, Mr. Love. Tell us what you're doing here and I can finally stop hitting you." Okame wasn't really that violent of a woman. A lot of things had changed since their civil war began.

The man tried to laugh, but he was shaking badly and the effect was, at best, unsettling. "The boss is gonna kill you all. You don't stand a ch-"

*SMACK*

Okame's footsteps were all the noise anyone made outside of Mr. Love's heavy breathing. "Why should we be afraid of some guy, when you won't even tell us who he is?"

This time the laughs felt more real. "No one wins against Mr. 0."

Okame glanced back at Kohza who shrugged in return. This was sounding less and less like the guy was working for the king. On a hunch, he stood up and walked up behind the seated man. "Have you ever even seen this boss of yours?"

While it seemed to hit a nerve, it had less effect than he'd hoped. "Any of the Officer Agents would destroy your little rabble. Especially Mr. 5 and Miss Valentine! She'd kick all your asses!"

So much for being tight lipped. "Mr. 5? Just how many officers do you have?"

Feeling like the tide had turned in his favor, the man went on, "Baroques Works is unstoppable! Besides Mr. 0 and Miss All-Sunday, we have loads of special agents, not to mention the millions and the billions. We're gonna run this country in no time!"

**[Quest Completed]**

**Title: Unraveling the Conspiracy  
Reward: 500xp received**

**[Quest Unlocked]**

**Title: Unraveling the Conspiracy, Part 2  
Description: Investigate Baroque Works and their plans for the nation of Alabasta.  
Reward: 1500xp**

**[Accept] or [Reject]?**

Kohza absently hit the [Accept] button as he leaned in to listen to the man. Suddenly wising up to the idea that he was saying too much, the man went white and clammed up. They tried a few more probing questions, but something had put a mighty fear in him and none of them had the stomach to go further.

Shortly thereafter, Kohza, Okame, and Erik stood outside of the tent.

Erik blundered forward to break the ice first. "Does anyone else feel like we're missing something? When we started, I was sure the guy was working for the king."

"Take over the country? Millions? Billions? Why haven't we heard anything about someone like that? How could you hide that?" Okame's anxiety level was higher than Kohza had ever seen it, but he felt oddly calm.

"Not on Alabasta. At least not in force. Assuming he's telling the truth." Kohza touched a knuckle to his lips in thought. "He was pretending to be one of us. Either he was here to sabotage us, spy on us and report to his boss, or…"

Erik didn't follow. "Or what?"

Kohza sighed as the third option came into focus for him. "They mean to steer us. Where and why? I don't know. Honestly, we're just guessing off of suspect intelligence right now. Erik, find out what his job was and find out if he sabotaged anything. Okame… oh god… take a head count. Figure out who's not here that should be. Specifically the folks that came with us up to the the last forward camp."

"Yes sir!" The pair chorused and took off.

**-=oOo=-**

**-=Character Stats=-**

**Name: Kohza Jakkaru  
Titles: [The Gamer], Leader of the Alabasta Revolution, Leader of the Suna Suna Clan  
Level: 14 (24% to next lvl)**

**STR: 20  
VIT: 23  
DEX: 21  
INT: 18  
WIS: 18  
LUK: 10  
Points: 0**

**Money: 280 Beli**

**Quest Journal:  
** **Unraveling the Conspiracy, Part 2**

**-=Author's Notes=-**

_I love the style and the story of One Piece, but I can't imagine writing a Luffy protagonist. Fun to read, hell to write. I briefly considered making this a crossover to introduce someone I'd like to write better, but the Gamer ability fits too neatly into the devil fruit concept to justify merging two worlds for that purpose. Instead, I'm going to take an intriguing throw-away character and let them figure out what life is like on the big stage. Enter Kohza (or as FFnet insists, Koza). He has the hero mentality, a start on some skills based on his training from Chaka as a youth, no existing devil fruit, and a hook for a story._

_Maybe it's a phase, but I have really enjoyed reading many Gamer fics in the past (mostly Naruto and HP because that's what's there). Probably because I'm a nerd and played way too many video games as a child. Maybe because I'm secretly stuck in the infinite tsukuyomi. I'm leaning towards the former._

_Anyway, I hope you enjoy this story, and I promise I'm not abandoning my other stories. I'm halfway through on the next chapter of Tsukumogami, and I'm still trying to reorganize some details of where things are headed in Remembering Tomorrow._


	2. Chapter 2 - The Learning Curve

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece. So I guess you could say I'm the proud owner of None Piece.

**PLAYER ONE PIECE  
Chapter 2 - The Learning Curve**

_Kohza sighed as the third option came into focus for him. "They mean to steer us. Where and why? I don't know. Honestly, we're just guessing off of suspect intelligence right now. Erik, find out what his job was and find out if he sabotaged anything. Okame… oh god… take a head count. Figure out who's not here that should be. Specifically the folks that came with us up to the the last forward camp."_

"_Yes sir!" The pair chorused and took off._

**-=oOo=-**

The mid-morning sun beat down on the cluster of tents and ruins. The oasis, once a small community, was now overrun with Alabasta revolutionaries. Rather than be put out, however, the residents were welcoming, praying for their success against a king that had grown tyrannical and gluttonous. Nanohana water sellers busily filled the ceramic jars in their wagons with a hand pump and pretended not to see anything around them. It said a lot about how far the king's reputation had fallen that the rebel's headquarters had yet to be revealed.

Kohza marched between the tents trying to come to terms with what he'd learned. How do you lead when the ground before you is shrouded by a sandstorm. Erik didn't report any sabotage that he could find. Maybe they caught him before he could do anything, maybe that wasn't his intent at all. No more of "his" people were missing, but they could just be laying low. No one but those he trusted with his life knew how he'd picked out Mr. Love. All the more reason to figure out what his new powers really are.

Today, his quest for answers led directly to the medical tent and he burst through the tent flaps. "Kebi!"

A head wrapped in a familiar red bandana popped his head up from between two empty cots. "Yeah?"

"You mentioned something about 'leveling up' last time we spoke? That would make my new ability more powerful, right?"

"That's right! … probably." Kebi planted a hand on a cot to lever himself to a standing position. Kohza decided not to ask what he'd been doing down there. "So, if you're really like a video game character, then it seems like we should take advantage of that."

Kohza was really regretting deciding that video games were a waste of time when he was a teenager. "How do we do that?"

"Well, it depends on what kind of game it is. The one thing they have in common is that you need to acquire 'experience' or 'xp'. Usually through fighting monsters or-"

"Quests?"

"... yeah, quests would work. Or sometimes straight-up training. Did something happen?"

"I got a quest alert when I noticed that guy yesterday. It said something about investigating a suspicious person. When Okame got that guy to break, it changed to say I was supposed to investigate this 'Baroque Works'."

"Oh, a quest chain! That probably means this is important! Well, I mean, outside of the video game thing, of course it is, but there was no guarantee that your new power would put importance in the same things. So that's good news!"

"Right… good news. Not that it sounds like a bad thing… but how is it good news?"

Kebi walked quickly over to his field desk and pulled out a bundle of paper and a pen. "Because now we know one of the ways that you can get stronger. We'll have to keep our eyes peeled for more quests. Usually there's some signifier. Glowing aura, question marks, exclamation marks. Things that look odd, but usually not dangerous." He bent over the papers to start writing something while Kohza thought back trying to remember if he'd seen anything like that.

Suddenly, Kebi lit up with a silver glow like a Christmas tree, "Gah!" Kohza jumped back in surprise. On second glance, the light appeared as if it was coming from behind him.

"Did something happen?"

"Yeah. You started glowing silver."

"Excellent! The experiment was successful. I just created a quest for you." He handed the paper to Kohza.

**[Quest Alert]**

**Title: Supplying the Revolution  
Description: The infirmary is short of supplies. Return with additional supplies as provided on "Kebi's Shopping List".  
Reward: 50xp for each item, Special Reward for returning with all items.**

**[Accept] or [Reject]?**

"It's asking me if I want to [Accept] your quest."

"Excellent. Go ahead. What else does it say?"

Kebi couldn't help but be excited, but Kohza was only just starting to come to grips with how fortunate he was to have a guide to work through this. "I'm supposed to return with the supplies on the list you gave me. 50xp per item, and a special reward for find all of them."

"Fascinating! I wonder what the special reward is supposed to be."

Kohza stared back blankly. "It's a reward for your quest. Wouldn't you be the one who gives it to me?"

"Not necessarily. Maybe I'll think of something before then, but it might not be a physical reward. We'll have to wait and see. Anyway, I had another experiment I wanted to try this morning."

"Not too long, right? I've still got a lot of work to do today." He absently pressed the [Accept] button and the quest window disappeared.

"If it works how I hope, it should take seconds." With that, Kebi picked up a book sitting on the desk and handed it to the commander.

**[You've acquired a skillbook - Emergency Field Surgery]**

**Title: Emergency Field Surgery  
Description: A medical reference book for performing surgery in less than optimal conditions.  
Requirements: Medicine (lvl 30)**

**[Skill Created: Medicine]  
[Previously acquired experience applied]**

**Warning: Medicine (lvl 4) too low. You do not meet the requirements for this skillbook. [OK]?**

"It says my medicine skill is too low to use this skillbook." Kohza flipped through a couple pages to skim the contents. "I think I have to agree there. I can do some basic first aid, but I'll leave this stuff to you."

"Actually, I'm having trouble with that book as well. I'd only been working with my dad in the clinic a couple years before this mess started. Just wish I had a numerical system to see how far away I was." Shaking his head, Kebi continued, "Anyway, the important thing is that your powers recognized that as a skillbook. That means we need to find books whose requirements you DO meet. Do you mind if I ask Okame to look into that?"

"Go ahead. Though, I have doubts whether I'll have time to read any of them. We've been kinda busy, after all."

Kebi only smiled in return. "Well, your doubts would be washed away if the experiment had worked, but trust me, that shouldn't be an issue. Anyway, that's all I have right now, but let me know if you do any sparring today. I'd like to be there in case your powers respond."

"Will do." Kohza swept the tent flap aside and blinked into the bright sun.

**-=Later That Day=-**

Sweat poured down his brow as he swung the long wooden practice blade against Farafra's shield. The other man's massive frame push back behind the shield, sending the blade swinging back around. Kohza turned his body, using the momentum to swing all the way around to the other side in a crushing blow, stopped cold again by the thick banded wood.

The big man grunted as he pushed the wooden blade back, casting an unhappy glance at Kebi.

"What?" Kohza glanced between the two. No one quite had the mental connection with the seeming brute that Kebi did. Farafra could put a lot of nuance into a simple gesture, but the doctor always had a good sense for what the bigger man meant.

Kebi cleared his throat and sat forward on the crate he'd selected for his seat. "I think he's annoyed at how slow you're swinging. Why do you use such a long and ungainly weapon?"

Kohza grunted as he rotated the sword above his head and brought it crashing down into the sand where his friend had been standing. Farafra tried to stomp on the blade, but Kohza took a step back and had the tip back in the air between them.

"You want to see something faster?" Kohza remembered back to his childhood. Back when he led the Suna Suna Clan. Children fighting against bandits. He'd begged Chaka, one of the head royal guards of Alabasta, to train him how to use a sword and the man had done it. That seemed so long ago. It wasn't long after that, that Kohza returned to Yuba to help his father.

It took a moment to dredge up the proper form, and the length of his blade made it a little clumsy, but he slowly slid his left foot forward, toes aimed ahead. He held the blade firmly upright, tipped forward. In his head, he started counting beats while he watched his opponent. _Step_. His foot glided across the firm sand and dirt of the encampment. _Step_. Farafra didn't respond except to hold his large shield at the ready and spread his feet a bit wider. _Step_...

_Step step_! In the next heartbeat, Kohza closed the remaining distance, lifting the blade on the first step and bringing it smashing down on the second. The blade careened off the edge of the shield, but the impact jarred Farafra's arm badly and he wasn't able to bring it back up again in time to block the following light jab that hit him square in the chest.

**[Skill Created - Sword Style: Shinkage-ryu]  
[Previously acquired experience applied]**

**Skill: Shinkage-ryu, an ancient single sword fighting style designed to allow to user to engage with multiple opponents simultaneously.  
Level: 13 (37% to next lvl)  
Active Effects: -25% skill level from Wooden **_**Greatsword**_**  
** **-75% damage from **_**Wooden**_ **Greatsword  
** **+9.75% DEX  
** **+19.5% armor penetration  
** **+9.75% parry chance**

Kohza stared at the window. He was never going to get used to this.

Kebi ran up beside him. "Did something happen?"

"What? How'd you know?" The doctor stared at the commander until Kohza realized he'd stopped in the middle of a spar with everyone staring at him. "... Right. Yeah, a skill just got created, but it's one I already knew. Chaka taught me some Shinkage-ryu when I was a kid, so it boosted me up to level seven right away."

"What's this about level seven?" Okame stalked up to the group after shooing away the rest of the gawkers.

"Video game stuff." Kebi waved his hand in the air as if to suggest it wasn't important.

"You mean devil fruit stuff. Any interesting developments?"

Kohza sighed. "Not really. We're still figuring stuff out, but so far I nothing impressive."

"Any idea on how to get to the impressive stuff? Cause I've seen Crocodile fight, in person, and his devil fruit stuff is pretty awesome. Scary awesome."

Kohza immediately passed the question off to Kebi.

"Uh, well, we're still figuring that out. I think finding out more about this Baroque Works would be a start. Maybe take on one of the smaller bananawani or some kung-fu dugong."

Okame grumbled in response. "Let me know when you get to amazing. I'm on pins and needles." She waved behind her as she walked back to her tent.

As Kohza turned back to the static, unclosed window, Kebi whipped out his pen and paper. "So can you write down everything from the skill window here? It'll help me figure out what's going on." He urged the papers into Kohza's free hand.

Groaning good-naturedly, Kohza copied everything down.

"Wait, a skill level debuff for using that weapon?"

"A what now?"

Kebi blinked. "... right. Okay, tell you what… I'll talk to Okame. We'll get this figured out."

**-=oOo=-**

Erik shifted uncomfortably under his turban. He liked his top hat, but Kohza insisted that they not wear identifying clothing while walking around Nanohana proper. The city itself was beautiful. Vendors eager to sell their wares and consumers reluctant to be swindled, but still looking everything over like moths over an open flame.

There was a rumor that a shipment of Dance Powder was coming in today, and he and the other rebels spread out through the crowd were tasked with stopping it. Destroying it if necessary. They just had to keep eyes out for something… suspicious…

A line of people covered in a beige tarp walked down the street next to a man in a suit and a deer, or elk, or something. Wearing a pretty snazzy top hat. Erik's jaw sagged as he watched the procession turn and head down an alleyway. His curiosity was definitely piqued, but there's no way smugglers would use such a disguise and he couldn't let himself be distracted.

He stared at the troupe until they turned another corner and disappeared. He considered once more to follow them, see what they were up to, when one of his people waved at him from further down the market. Excellent! Looks like there was a sighting. With a last wistful glance after the strange group he walked away from the alley entrance.

**-=oOo=-**

Okame waltzed up to the map table with a smug grin carrying a gunny sack which she promptly dumped onto whatever it was Kohza and Kebi were working on. Kebi gave her an odd look, to which she winked back and pulled a longer wrapped package from behind her back to set on the table a bit more carefully. "See what happens when you turn things over to me? It gets done, that's what."

"Thanks, Okame. What would we do without you?" Kohza deadpanned.

"Keep that up and you might find out." Okame sassed in return.

Kebi simply rolled his eyes. "So you got what we talked about?"

Okame picked up the long package and handed it to Kohza. "If this won't work, you'll have to have Farafra make something custom, but it fit everything you asked for."

"I asked for something?"

Kebi coughed. "You said that your sword skill was being hurt by using a greatsword. I remember Chaka's old nodachi, so I asked for something like that, but… you know. Chaka's a big guy. Something better suited to your... stature."

Kohza eyed his friend for a moment as he unwrapped the bundle. The cloth dropped to the ground as he held up a long sword in a burgundy wooden sheath. Unsheathing the blade, he held the slightly-curved, single-edged blade out at arm's length. From pommel to tip, the blade was long enough to reach from his toes to his armpit. Heavier than it looked, but he was used to swinging something that moved things when it hit.

**[Quest Alert]**

**Title: Carrying on the Tradition  
Description: Master the combat style of your first teacher.  
Reward: 3000xp, Special Reward**

**[Accept] or [Reject]?**

That Kohza had just then been thinking about Chaka's decision to teach him didn't seem like a coincidence. Creating his own quests sounded like a good idea. Simpler at least. He tapped the [Accept] button and returned the longsabre to its sheath.

"And that's not all..." Okame grabbed the gunny sack by the bottom hem and emptied the contacts all over the table top. "I'm still not sure why you needed these though. Do we really have time to learn this stuff?"

Kebi's eyes lit up at the apparent treasure, and he quickly started picking up the books and skimming the spines. "We'll learn that soon. Oh, this one should be handy!" He quickly sorted the pile into two stacks. "Kohza, go ahead and try these ones first."

Having a suspicion of what his friend meant, he picked up the top book on the smaller stack.

**[You've acquired a skillbook - The Art of Seamanship, Volume VI]**

**Title: The Art of Seamanship, Volume VI  
Description: A basic manual of seamanship provided to Marine recruits during basic training.  
Requirements: Level 3, INT 15**

**Would you like to learn this skill? [Yes] or [No]**

Tapping on the [Yes] button caused the book in his hands to glow gold for a moment, catching everyone's attention, before the glow receded, leaving nothing in his hands.

**[Skill Created - Seamanship]  
[Skillbook increased Seamanship skill]**

**Skill: Seamanship, the ability to manage the daily operations of a vessel at sea.  
Level: 2 (0% to next lvl)  
Active Effects: +4% location determination  
** **+4% direction determination**

"... what?" Count on Okame to break the ice. "... the hell?" The others in the room looked equally at a loss.

Kebi coughed into his hand. "Ah, right, well I suppose we should have expected something like that. Kohza, which book was that?"

"Seamanship." He shook his head as if that might make some sense of what had happened. "This is amazing! I've never actually helmed a boat, much less a ship, but I suddenly understand all kinds of things about how it's done. Using a weighted line to make sure I don't bottom out, tacking into the wind. I still don't think I could impress a seasoned Marine, but I swear I didn't know anything about that stuff before."

Farafra picked up the next book on the stack and turned it over in his hand curiously.

Okame spoke slow enough that it was clear she was choosing her words. "And the glowy thing… that was the power, right?"

Kebi nodded excitedly. "We tried it earlier, but his current level didn't allow him to learn it. I asked Okame to get her hands on all of the introductory manuals and basic textbooks she could. Which reminds me, how the hell did you get a Marine handbook?"

Back in her element, Okame's smug smile returned. "That's not all the Marine gear you can get on the black market. Marines are getting into hock in Rainbase all the time. Selling every possession they own, or were issued, just to keep the casino from telling their superiors about their debts. Let me know if you want anything else, cause I swear it's a goldmine."

Kohza took the next book on the stack.

**[You've acquired a skillbook - Rifle Marksmanship for Dummies]**

**Title: Rifle Marksmanship for Dummies  
Description: A basic manual of rifle markmanship provided to Marine recruits during basic training.  
Requirements: Level 2, DEX 12**

**Would you like to learn this skill? [Yes] or [No]**

Tapping [Yes] again, Kohza was far more prepared for the flash of light that seemed to destroy the book in his hand.

**[Skill Created - Marksmanship: Firearms]  
[Previously acquired experience applied]  
[Skillbook increased Marksmanship - Firearms skill]**

**Skill: Marksmanship - Firearms, the ability to aim and operate small-bore barreled projectile weapons.  
Level: 18 (42% to next lvl)  
Active Effects: +18% accuracy with firearms**

The flood of information was almost euphoric. It was different from learning how to sail a ship, because he'd never done it before. He was a decent shot with a rifle already, but it was mostly self-taught. Now he was suddenly aware of methods for checking the wind, understood the benefits of firing after the exhale. It didn't seem that his powers differentiated between levels from practice or reading, but he could certainly appreciate the benefits of both right now.

"Alright, now we're getting into awesome. Not crushing groups of people with sand, but still, it has potential. What happens if he tries to read one of these other books?" Okame picked up the top book on the discard pile. The spine read: The Complete Kama Sutra… She quickly pocketed the handbook with a slight blush while Kebi continued sorting.

"Some of these are definitely too advanced. Others, irrelevant at the moment. Until we know whether or not there are some limits on how many of these he can absorb, we have to focus on what's useful now. We'll probably have some more rejects in the stack, but we won't know till we check." Kebi gestured for Kohza to continue.

Smiling like a kid in a candy store, Kohza reached for the next book.

"Kohza!"

Erik burst through the command tent flaps, his turban hanging in loose strips around his shoulders. "Kohza! Something's happening in Nanohana!"

"What? Pirates? Crocodile usually takes care of them." Kohza helped the man over to a folding chair.

"Big fight. Between Marines and a bunch of pirates. One of the pirates is Fire Fist Ace!"

"Whitebeard's 2nd Division Commander? What's he doing in this end of the Grand Line?" Okame rubbed Erik's back while he regained his breath.

"Don't know. I left when Fire Fist turned into a big ball of fire and started fighting the Marine captain, who seemed to turn into some kind of smoke thing. Crazy stuff."

Kohza put a hand on Erik's shoulder. "If you're not too tired, can you lead me to where you saw them last?"

Taking a couple steadying breaths, Erik nodded in response. "Yeah, that shouldn't be a problem. I'll need a fresh horse, though."

"Farafra, grab a couple more people and join us by the horses." Kohza grabbed the longsabre and swung the sheath's strap over his shoulder before pushing the tent flap back out into the blistering sun.

**-=oOo=-**

The crowds of people in the city introduced a new distraction for Kohza. Every person he could see had the name bar he'd only just gotten used to in the camp. Now the text was so crowded, he couldn't make any of it out until he got close. While he saw a lot of Nanohana Resident, there were just as many with other titles. The levels were almost universally low, aside from a few mercenaries watching over market stalls, but even then the levels were lower than his own.

That is until they turned a corner and nearly walking into a grumbling Marine Captain and his troops.

**[Marine: Captain]  
Smoker, LV35**

Erik and Kohza quickly made way for the annoyed Marines. Behind them, Farafra and Gasim did likewise, but Natto wasn't so quick. He hit the dirt road hard in a cloud of dust as the Captain walked on. A woman in a floral shirt under a purple jacket slipped in beside him and hauled the rebel to his feet with a muttered apology.

**[Marine: Master Chief Petty Officer]  
Tashigi, LV17**

Damn. Higher level and she looked younger than him, and that sword on her hip was pretty impressive. Not just a cute face then.

**[Skill created - Observation]**

**Skill: Observation, the ability to learn about a target by studying them.  
Level: 1 (10% to next lvl)  
Active Effects: +20% weakness analysis from INT**

He tried to clear the window with a nonchalant wave of his arm, but the gesture seemed to catch Tashigi's peripheral vision and she turned toward him.

**[Marine: Master Chief Petty Officer]  
Tashigi, LV17  
A dedicated Marine working under Captain Smoker.**

Well, that was simultaneously not helpful, but very interesting. He'd have to let Kebi know about that new wrinkle, but in the mean time Kohza kept his head down after she turned away, just in case he could be recognized.

And like that, the Marine contingent were past them, hurrying to follow their captain. For a moment, Kohza considered having someone follow the Marines, but if they caught their tail, they might start getting more involved. Thus far, Crocodile's efforts to keep Alabasta free of pirates was also keeping the streets free of Marine activity. They mostly docked purely to resupply, but no one came to a desert country for shore leave. Especially one in the middle of a drought. The rebels, as a rule, kept their activity out of site of the Marines. If they did finally get involved, it didn't take a politician to figure out which side they would support. But might they already be involved? The thought was chilling.

Kohza gestured to the thinner of the two men Farafra had brought from the camp. "Gasim, follow them, but stay out of sight. We'll debrief tonight at Katorea."

Gasim nodded, though you could hardly tell with his face was shrouded in a deep hood, and melted into crowd in the direction the Marines had stalked off in. Waving Erik to lead on, the remaining rebels pushed their way through the crowd.

As the buildings gave way, the sound of salt water rushed up to meet them as it ran up and down the beach. So much water, but not a drop to drink. Just thinking about it had Kohza reflexively reach for his canteen.

"What's that?" Natto leaned over the railing of the terrace overlooking the shore and pointed at a cluster of shapes out on the water.

"That's a lot of ships. They looks like warships, too." Erik passed his binoculars to Kohza.

It looked like five frigates trying to run down a sloop. The realization struck him a moment later that those were terms he didn't know yesterday. It was hard to make out at this distance, but the five ships all had similar pictures on their sails. A skull with purple wings. A few had writing on them as well, but picking out the letters was… wait… starts with a 'B'.

God damnit. "Baroque Works. The five big ships. How can we have not heard about these people? They put their damn name on their sails!" Kohza couldn't help but feel like an idiot. Granted, his people were civilians before the war started, but this was pathetic.

Before he could chastise himself further, a massive fireball ripped through the five ships. A few split in half, debris flying through the air. Hundreds of men floundered in the sea as the lone sloop passed between the burning wreckage.

"Holy shit…" Yeah, the sentiment was shared.

"That must have been Fire Fist Ace. Does that mean he's working against Baroque Works?"

Kohza shook his head. "He's a pirate, even if he is, it doesn't mean he's on our side. We still don't know what they're trying to do here."

"As long as he's not pointed at us… how do you stop something like that?" Natto was understandably unnerved.

"Crocodile will stop him." Erik noted. There was something to that. Crocodile was a Shichibukai, after all. "Do you think your devil fruit powers will ever get that powerful?"

Kohza shuddered. He honestly couldn't imagine wielding that kind of power. When the king was finally stopped from stealing all the rain, he wanted to go back to Yuba and help his dad rebuild the oasis there. Blowing up ships full of people so casually... well, he probably wouldn't have to deal with it, after all, "Fire trumps video games."

Erik nodded in response as they all continued to stare at the wreckage with the rest of them.

**-=Back at the Camp in Katorea=-**

"I think it's an answer that we'll need sooner rather than later, Kohza." Erik had been insistent since they left the Nanohana outskirts. "Your new power is the ace up our sleeve. If you haven't forgotten, Chaka and Pell are still guarding the King. We need to know how it can be used as a weapon."

"I'll talk to Kebi. Maybe there's something we haven't thought of, but the way he describes it, video games always start off weak."

"So you need time. But is it months? Years? I'm not trying to put this all on you, but the people don't have that long. Erumalu is a wasteland. Yuba is well on its way to the same. Everyone that can has been migrating to Nanohana. Water sellers have started shipping in water from other countries! How long can we afford to do that?" The energy drained out of Erik's frame as despair set in. "Just… try. You know all this too. We have to do something soon. We need to be ready."

Kohza nodded before breaking away from the group to head to the command tent.

Pushing aside the flaps, he took a moment to bask in the shade. The air was as hot as ever, even under cover, but shade could make even a day like this bearable. The tent was unoccupied, but the stacks of books from earlier lay there. Was this how he was going to get more powerful? He knew more, that was for sure, but you didn't blow up frigates with knowledge. Then again, maybe there was something in there about explosives.

The top book on the approved stack was thicker than the others. Kohza picked it up and held it at arm's length. Nothing happened. He turned the book to read the title along the spine.

_A Treatise on Devil Fruits and their Origins_

… Okay, so not a skillbook. This was… very important. He was briefly torn between the stack of instant gratification and the tome of vital knowledge in his hand. He glanced at the walls to gage the sun's position. Well above the horizon. Good. Time enough for both.

Carefully setting aside the treatise, he picked up the next one from the stack.

**[You've acquired a skillbook - The Dynamancer's Cookbook]**

**Title: The Dynamancer's Cookbook  
Description: A fundamental guide to the making and use of explosive materials.  
Requirements: Level 8, INT 18, WIS 18**

**Would you like to learn this skill? [Yes] or [No]**

That's what he was talking about. The gleam was back in his eyes as he tapped the [Yes] button.

**-=oOo=-**

Gasim ducked around a corner in order to turn his cloak inside-out to reveal the second color scheme on the other side. It wouldn't do to have the Marines notice him before he'd picked up anything useful for the commander. The Captain and Master Chief Petty Officer were inside the port control building, but fortunately a small group of Marines were talking plenty loud enough to be heard from his chosen spot on the opposite site of a stack of water barrels.

"... so why do you think the Captain is chasing the Straw Hats so hard? Weren't we supposed to man the Loguetown depot for another few months? And here we are, out on the Grandline with the crazies."

"The Captain is dedicated, unlike some others I could mention."

"There's dedicated and then there's obsessed. C'mon, Chief Tashigi must have mentioned something."

There was a rustle of movement, but nothing that identified who was doing what. The remainder continued in a quieter voice, but Gasim had heard enough to pick out the voices from the background noises.

"The Straw Hat's captain. Luffy. I heard he's important for some reason. Not just because he's a pirate making waves. He's important for some other reason. As to that, I don't know. But, I think it has something to do with King Cobra."

"What? I thought Alabasta was just another stop on the Grandline."

"I thought so too, but apparently Captain Smoker saw Princess Vivi traveling with them. Said they didn't even kidnap her."

Gasim froze. He'd never met the girl himself, but the captain and a few of his folks were tight with her. Did she hire them to help? And who would they… Damnit, he wasn't listening anymore. He strained to hear anything else, but apparently they switched to talking about a storm they'd weathered on the way here. Deciding not to push the limits, he slipped away from the Marines and headed out of town.

Commander Kohza was going to want to hear this.

**-=oOo=-**

**-=Character Stats=-**

**Name: Kohza Jakkaru  
Titles: [The Gamer], Leader of the Alabasta Revolution, Leader of the Suna Suna Clan  
Level: 14 (87% to next lvl)**

**STR: 20  
VIT: 23  
DEX: 21  
INT: 18  
WIS: 18  
LUK: 10  
Points: 0  
Money: 280 Beli**

**Skills:  
** **Medicine (lvl 4)  
** **Sword Style: Shinkage-ryu (lvl 13)  
** **Seamanship (lvl 2)  
** **Marksmanship: Firearms (lvl 18)  
** **Observation (lvl 1)  
** **Explosives (lvl 2)  
** **Carpentry (lvl 2)  
** **Sleight of Hand (lvl 2)  
** **Unarmed Combat (lvl 11)  
** **Negotiation (lvl 12)  
** **Cooking (lvl 8)**

**Quest Journal:  
** **Unraveling the Conspiracy, Part 2  
** **Supplying the Revolution  
** **Carrying on the Tradition**

**-=Author's Notes=-**

_I have a plot arc for the story, but I'm moving slow right now because I'm trying to work out the mechanics of a few last elements. Specifically, loot and perks. I'm tempted to leave battle loot out, because it introduces some major distractions, but quest loot will definitely stay. I just have to figure out what that will look like._

_Perks, on the other hand, I'm excited to introduce. This is the part where Kohza's power becomes more than just a power-up mechanism. I'm leaning towards a Fallout style, rather than a Trait and Flaw system for simplicity. Besides, most of the time "Lecherous" or "Perverted" ends up being one of the flaws, and if I do any fanservice like that, I'll probably bite the bullet and make Kohza spend points to get it._

_You'll notice that my skills are fairly broad. I'm not going to make a new skill for each attack, but special attacks may require being above certain skill thresholds to use. That being said, I'd like to hear it anyone has ideas for other skills that would make sense to include. And while you're at it, if you have any clever perks you think you be fun, I'd love to hear that as well._

_Thanks for reading._


	3. Chapter 3 - Falling to Pieces

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece. They say you can either have your piece or eat it, and I skipped breakfast.

**PLAYER ONE PIECE**

**Chapter 3 - Falling to Pieces**

"_I thought so too, but apparently Captain Smoker saw Princess Vivi traveling with them. Said they didn't even kidnap her."_

_Gasim froze. He'd never met the girl himself, but the captain and a few of his folks were tight with her. Did she hire them to help? And who would they… Damnit, he wasn't listening anymore. He strained to hear anything else, but apparently they switched to talking about a storm they'd weathered on the way here. Deciding not to push the limits, he slipped away from the Marines and headed out of town._

_Commander Kohza was going to want to hear this._

**-=oOo=-**

Despite the onset of dusk, the camp was in an uproar. Clusters of people were huddled together talking, shouting, cursing the King. Erik's people had just returned from Nanohana talking about the discovery of a massive shipment of dance powder headed for the capital.

"This doesn't change anything! We already knew the King used dance powder. A bunch of it was found in the palace last year. We need to keep our heads!"

"No! This shows that he never plans to stop until we all starve. We have to stop him or our families will die!"

The second argument was met by cheers and a few worried looks. Kohza stalked towards the largest and loudest group as rebels arguing either side parted before him. Only a hand on the inside of his elbow stopped him from grabbing their attention.

Erik leaned in and spoke in a low tone. "Kohza, stop! We can USE this! It's not just us that are angry. The people of Nanohana are furious. If you went into town and gave a speech or something, that might be all we need to march on the capital!"

Running a hand through his blonde hair, Kohza turned toward his comrade. "The Royal Guard is strong and well trained. We have to be cautious. This-!" He gestured toward the groups of rebels and Katorean locals, slowly making their way toward the loudest speakers. "Is dangerous! Do you think we get more than one shot at this or something?"

"Of course, but we HAVE to do SOMETHING! If we just sit back, isn't that just another way of losing?" Erik's voice was getting louder and a few people glanced toward the pair.

Kohza grabbed Erik to pull him to the side of the growing cluster. "Aren't you concerned about what Baroque Works is up to? There are serious questions to answer."

"I think you're letting yourself get distracted, Kohza. We have an opportunity here. We can-"

"Kohza!" A harried Okame interrupted Erik to pull on the commander's sleeve. He was starting to get annoyed at the grabbiness. "Gasim is back. I think you're going to want to hear this from him."

Turning back, Kohza gave Erik a hard look. "Don't do anything reckless. I'll be back shortly." Once Erik returned a nod, Kohza followed Okame through the crowd back to the command tent.

The left behind most of the rebels who weren't retired to their tents, leaving the rest of the camp curiously empty along the way, though campfires sputtered relentlessly. As they passed behind the first row of tents, the voices of the crowd grew muted. Kohza couldn't help but notice that Okame looked more harried than he was used to as she led the way. More like the quiet child he remembered than the sarcastic teen who didn't take crap from anyone.

Pushing the tent flap aside, Kohza found Gasim resting, sitting on an empty water barrel. "Commander." He looked like he was going to shove himself to his feet, but sagged back when Kohza gestured him to stay put.

"What is it I needed to hear?"

"Princess Vivi. She's here. She'd back in Alabasta."

Confusion and relief warred in him. Princess Vivi Nefertari had been missing for two years. He's convinced himself that he'd never see his childhood friend again. "You're sure of this?"

"I overheard the Marines talking. Apparently the Captain recognized her traveling with the Straw Hat Pirates."

"They're the ones with Fire Fist Ace?"

"Looks like, though the wanted posters don't mention him on their crew. Fire Fist works for Whitebeard, so maybe Whitebeard recruited them as allies?"

None of this made any sense. "Wait, why would Baroque Works, an organization that has apparently done an excellent job of running under the radar, attack a pirate ship in sight of Nanohana harbor?"

"That's… a good question. I don't know, commander."

Okame took the opportunity to step in. "You think Baroque Works is trying to get Vivi?" As children, Okame and Vivi had been pretty close. There weren't many girls eager to join the Suna Suna Clan after the Agotogi thing. Fighting adult bandits to the death wasn't exactly the kind of fun most kids wanted any part of, but the few that stuck close were like siblings now. Okame couldn't help but be concerned about her unofficial sister's mysterious reappearance.

"Maybe. We have to get in touch with her. Do we have any idea where the Straw Hats went after the… explosion?"

Okame shrugged. "I'll look into it. I haven't heard anything since then. All I know is that they went upriver. Maybe they're bringing her to the palace?"

"Maybe..." Kohza pinched the bridge of his nose. Too many unanswered questions. So many lives depended on him choosing the right path, and that path had never looked as cloudy as at that moment. "Gasim, I want you to take a couple people on horseback to head up the riverbank. See where the Straw Hats docked. Bring a falcon to send a message back on what you find."

"Yes, commander."

**-=oOo=-**

"The operation will begin tomorrow morning at 7 o'clock! This is final stage of Baroque Work's 'Utopia Plan'. Failure will not be tolerated. Meeting Adjourned." Crocodile, owner of Rain Dinners Casino and infamous Shichibukai, closed the meeting with a dismissive wave of his hand. The five gathered Baroque Works Frontier Agents took the opportunity to escape from the intimidating man.

As they walked down the hallway that led to the rear entrance, the curvy woman in a stylized white fur coat and a cowboy hat stepped forward, "Mr. 2. A moment if you will."

Mr. 2, a heavily made up man wearing a garish blue outfit with a pink swan-decorated longcoat, turned to face the woman as the other agents went around the pair. "What is it, Miss All-Sunday? I'm excited to get started!" His smile easily occupied half of the expressive man's face. How could this man be the greatest spy on the Grand Line?

"A slight change of plans. You'll need to make a stop on the way to your next mission." She handed a new paper over to the man, who studied the paper with some incredulity.

The swan-man glanced over at their boss, but he was lost in thought at the other end of the hall, puffing away at his cigar with his hands folded in front of him. Glancing back at Miss All-Sunday's perfect poker face, he nodded. Glancing around for a candle or something to burn the new orders, he eventually gave up and stuffed it in his mouth. If Miss All-Sunday was disgusted, you couldn't tell. Then again, if she was happy, you still couldn't tell. He turned and followed his colleagues out.

**-=oOo=-**

**The Next Day**

"Observe," Kohza whispered to himself. Saying it out loud seemed to be the quickest way to activate his powers, though he wondered if he wasn't developing a bad habit.

**[Young Bananawani, CR13]**

**Bananawani are not born at their incredible size. It can take decades to reach a sufficient size to intimidate sea kings. That is, if they survive that long.**

Kohza crept down the sand bank towards the river edge. Most of the older, massive bananawani lived upriver. He wasn't about to try his luck on one of those monsters. It didn't seem that long ago that the situation was reversed, with the bigger ones living by the delta, but something changed a few years ago. He wasn't about to turn down the convenience.

As he sidled up behind a rock overlooking, the horse-sized bananawani busied itself digging into a comparatively small fanged eel. Kebi stayed at a distance, not at all eager to take on one of these creatures without more backup. Still, they needed an experiment, and Kohza was confident he could take one down. Referencing his notes again, as if the numbers would change themselves on his paper, he stared at the '87% to lvl up'. If he could level up, it would answer a lot of questions they still had. Hopefully.

With a vicious snarl, the bananawani dove back into the carcass to dig out the favored entrails. Taking advantage of the opening, Kohza leapt out from his cover and closed the distance with the noisy predator. Within ten feet, the creature pulled his head out and saw its newest threat and roared.

Less than eager to deal with the monster's teeth head on, Kohza slipped to the side and slashed at the tough scaly side. Blood, but not enough.

The bananawani turned abruptly away from Kohza, whipping its massive tail at the man. He quickly vaulted over the bludgeon, only for the beast to complete its turn and lash out at him again with its array of teeth.

This one was cleverer than he'd hoped. Kohza swiped at the closing jaws, only to glance off a tooth, but delivering enough force to open a path to evade. Sidestepping again, Kohza slashed at the creature's hide again, this time near its eyes, hoping for a lucky hit. In response, the tail came whipping past again, forcing him to jump back or get hammered.

Anger shone in the beast's eyes as the combatants faced off again.

Taking an instinctual gamble, he grabbed a hold of a crest on the bananawani's head and swung himself up onto the creature's back. It thrashed wildly to dislodge him, but not enough to keep him from sheathing a solid foot of his longsabre in its forehead.

**[Gained 1 rank in Sword Style: Shinkage-ryu]**

A few warbles echoed out from the dying creature's throat as it settled limply into the sand.

Kebi ran up excitedly. "So?"

"99%..." Kohza groaned, not sounding any happier than Kebi's suddenly downcast face. He walked over to his recent kill and wrenched the wet blade out. "Whoa, here's something new!"

**[Young Bananawani Looted]  
[You've acquired Bananawani Teeth (x4), Bananawani Hide, Fresh Bananawani Meat (x2), and a Bottle of Rum]  
[Quest Update: Supplying the Revolution - Acquired Disinfectant (Bottle of Rum)]**

"I got a bottle of rum from killing it!"

Kebi stared at Kohza for a moment. "What bottle?"

That… was a good question. "I don't know. It said I looted the bananawani and got some teeth, hide and the bottle. Not many places it could hide something like that? Maybe it's underneath?" He set his back against the creature to try rolling it.

Kebi mused, "Or maybe he swallowed it whole?" Kohza blanched at that idea, knowing all too well that the doctor wouldn't have any qualms cutting the thing wide open. "Wait a second… check your inventory."

"Ok, just assume I don't know what things are."

Kebi gave the commander a sheepish grin. "Right... say 'inventory'."

"Inventory."

**[Inventory]  
\- Bananawani Teeth (x4)  
\- Bananawani Hide  
****\- Fresh Bananawani Meat (x2)  
****\- **_**Bottle of Rum (Quest Item)**_

The window in front of him was different than most. Instead of lots of writing, there were black boxes lined up in a grid. 48 boxes in total, though only four had pictures in them. The bottle of rum in the fourth box had a gold 'Q' in the corner. Were the items just part of the gaming powers? What was the point?

Kohza tried to poke the box with the bottle in it, only to feel glass under his finger. Curious, he pushed again and watched his finger pass through the black square, rounded glass sliding against his skin. Fascinating! Reaching his hand in, he got a grip on the glass and pulled out the bottle of rum. He turned the bottle over in his hand with a smug grin on his face. This power was getting more and more interesting.

"What?!" Kebi pointed at the bottle in the commander's hand.

With a grin, Kohza tossed the bottle to the doctor.

**[Quest Update: Supplying the Revolution - Delivered Disinfectant (Bottle of Rum)]**

**Reward: 50xp received**

Kebi handled the bottle delicately, as if it would disappear at any moment. "Wow… it looked like you pulled it out of thin air.

**[LEVELED UP TO 15!]**

**[Gained 5 stat points (Total: 5 remaining stat points)]**

**-CHARACTER STATS-**

**STR: 20  
VIT: 23  
DEX: 21  
INT: 18  
WIS: 18  
CHA: 10  
Remaining Points: 5**

"Hey, it looks like that did the trick! Level 15!" Kohza studied his stat distribution. Most of the previous points went into his mental stats, and he wasn't so arrogant as to believe it hadn't made any difference. He was tempted to continue that trend, but with things heating up, he figured he might need to boost his physical abilities. The dexterity boost was definitely noticeable in that fight.

Kebi tapped him on the shoulder to shake him out his thoughts. "That's great, commander. Can you tell me what you see?" He pulled out his notes and a pencil.

"Sure. Looks like I got five more stat points with the new level. I'm planning on putting them into dexterity." Kohza tapped the up arrow next to DEX until the points were spent as Kebi nodded in response and made some notes. When he pushed the [ACCEPT] button, a new window opened up.

**[Gained 1 perk point (Total: 3 remaining perk points)]**

**-CHARACTER PERKS-**

**Current Perks:  
****none**

**Available Perks:  
****\- The Will of D: Can only be taken as your first perk. You are destined to change the world around you. For better or worse, your life will be interesting.  
****\- Reading Comprehension: Gain 50% more skill ranks from reading skillbooks. Reading speed for non-skillbooks increased by 100%.  
****\- Friend to Animals (rank 1): Aggressive animals are not automatically hostile unless provoked. Improved chance to befriend neutral animals.  
****\- Animal Companion (rank 1): Induct a befriended animal as a companion on your journey. Limited to one animal companion at a time. Player must be a higher level than the animal in question.  
****\- Poison Resistance (rank 1): Improved resistance to all poisons and toxins. Select one poison for immunity.  
****\- Intense Training (rank 1): Increase selected skill by 10 lvls (below lvl 50) or 5 lvls (at or above lvl 50). Experience gained in selected skill increases by 10%.  
****\- Berserker: Output damage increased by the character's percentage of health below full health.  
****\- Thick Skinned: Damage threshold increased by 20%. Unarmored damage threshold equivalent to wearing thick leather armor.  
****\- Wired Reflexes: Reaction time improved by 20%. May react to attacks without conscious thought.  
****\- Adventure Awaits (rank 1): Initiates a major local sidequest with a major treasure reward.  
****\- Inner Focus (rank 1): First step to unlocking [Secret] ability tree.**

"Oooookay. This is new." Kohza scanned through the various listed option. "What are perks supposed to be? Some of these looks pretty interesting."

Kebi got an excited look on his face and handed Kohza a blank piece of paper to write it all down while he watched over his shoulder. With the completed list, the doctor scoured each entry carefully. "You get to pick three?"

Kohza tapped one of the entries. "Wired Reflexes sounds like a winner."

"Don't choose it yet. Did you read the first one?"

"The Will of D? Doesn't that sound like a waste? Why not Thick Skinned or Poison Resistance?"

Kebi shook his head. "We don't know what effect it will have, but that doesn't mean it's not important. Besides, you'll never have another chance after you spend your first perk. Isn't changing the world what we're trying to do with this revolution?"

Glancing back at the game window, Kohza read the first entry again. It wasn't flashy like some of the others, but there was something appealing about it that he couldn't describe. He DID want to change the world. The world was cruel, and only seemed to be getting crueler. It needed to change. Deciding to trust that feeling, and his good friend, he tapped the entry. Hitting [Confirm] on a window asking if he was sure caused the perk to move up to his Current Perk list.

**[Quest Alert]**

**Title: The Will of D**

**Rank: ***  
Description: Investigate the mystery surrounding those with the middle initial "D".  
Reward: [?]**

**[Accept] or [Reject]?**

Not seeing any reason not to, Kohza tapped the [Accept] button. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Kebi whip his notes into the pocket of his robe and turned to see a man jogging up to the pair.

"Commander! Message from camp!"

The man looked vaguely familiar, and Kohza was grateful for the title above the man's head. "Go ahead Ali."

For a moment, the messenger looked startled and a little uncomfortable, but he shook it off quickly enough. "I was told to let you know that the mayor of Tamarisk wanted to meet with you to discuss requested supplies."

"Alright… I'll be back in camp before nightfall. Did Erik send this message? I told him that I wouldn't be gone long."

"Yes sir, but with all due respect, I believe he meant the meeting was to be held in Tamarisk this evening. He hoped you would be able to travel there directly." Ali seemed nervous as Kohza considered the message. Was now really the time to make a trip like that? Especially with the Dance Powder news. "Uh, also sir, I just wanted to thank you for everything you've done for us." Ali extended his hand and Kohza shook it firmly.

"We're all doing our part. With any luck, we'll be able to settle down and grow our crops again soon." Releasing the hand Kohza considered the message. "Tell Erik that I'll see the mayor, but to expect me back in camp in the morning."

"Yes sir." The man had a genuine smile on his face as a he turned and walked back to his horse. Kohza and Kebi watched him go long enough to be sure they weren't observed and pulled out the notes to continue their discussion.

Once the horse crested the nearest hill, the messenger touched his face with his left hand, instantly transforming into a heavily made up man with a large, expressive face. Touching his face, with his right this time, he transformed yet again. This time his hair went blonde and grew into long sideburns. His features were sharp and tanned. Unseen to anyone but a gamer-man, the title above the shifted along with him, now reading [Leader of the Alabasta Revolution], Kohza D. Jakkaru. A bout of hysterical laughter followed him back to the encamped rebel army.

**-=oOo=-**

**Hours later on the way to Tamarisk**

It was official. Kohza loved Wired Reflexes. All told, he'd killed five of the young bananawani, and figured he could have rooted out a couple more if it hadn't been for one of the scarier moments of his life.

Moments after looting his last kill, both Kebi and he had been knocked off their feet from a massive rumbling. Sufficiently freaked out, the pair had taken cover just as a truly massive bananawani had shaken off a blanket of sand, formerly assumed to be just another dune. Even on land, the monster was fast. They were extremely fortunate that their horses were faster. They were even more fortunate that they'd tied the horses pretty solidly beforehand, because they seemed even more terrified than themselves.

It was last bit he'd 'observed' as they rode away that stuck in his mind, however.

**[Mother Bananawani *BOSS*, CR26]**

Kebi had explained that CR meant challenge… something. Could he try putting points in memory next time? Anyway, it related to what level you should be if you want to take on that fight. Yes, he was severely outclassed, but he was getting better. In his life on the desert, he'd seen dozens of similar massive desert creatures. Massive lizards, scorpions, snakes. Sure, you could take them down with a posse, but that number told him something very important. He could beat them. He could become a monster to the monsters.

Who knew how long it would take, but having numbers in front of you made the whole process seem far more achievable.

But now he had to play the politician. Fortunately Tamarisk wasn't that far from Katorea. The oasis town that housed the rebel headquarters thrived partly due to the fact that it was midway between Tamarisk and Nanohana. With a packed earth road to travel after negotiations, he might even be able to make it back to camp before dark.

While in any town, he took some care to keep from being easily recognized. It was good for the Alabasta people to see his face, but bad for the wrong people. Marines, Royal Guard, etc.

They'd nearly passed a market stall crowded with people when Kohza reigned in his horse. Did he hear what he thought he heard?

"What's wrong commander?" Kebi whispered as Kohza dismounted. Waving away the question, Kohza gestured for Kebi to follow him to the edge of the crowd.

"Are you sure it was the king? I can't imagine him attacking his own people like that! He must have gone mad!"

"I saw it with my own eyes! He ordered his troops to burn Nanohana to the ground. When the rebel leader tried to stop him, the royal guard overwhelmed him. They said they they were going to take his body to Alubarna to hang it from the walls! Then they took off with it."

"Jakkaru's dead? What are the rebels gonna do now?"

"A bunch of folks in town took up weapons and rushed to Katorea. I think they're going to attack the palace!"

Kebi's eyes widened. "What?... The King? Why would he fake your death?" As he turned toward his commander, he realized the man wasn't listening. He was simply staring a window visible only to himself.

**[Title Update - 'Leader of the Alabasta Revolution' has changed to 'Martyr of the Alabasta Revolution']**

"I think we need to leave."

**-=oOo=-**

**-=CHARACTER SUMMARY=-**

**Name: Kohza D. Jakkaru  
Titles: [The Gamer], Martyr of the Alabasta Revolution, Leader of the Suna Suna Clan  
Level: 15 (41% to next lvl)**

**STR: 20  
VIT: 23  
DEX: 26  
INT: 18  
WIS: 18  
CHA: 10  
Remaining Points: 0  
Money: 280 Beli**

**Skills:  
\- Medicine (lvl 4)  
\- Sword Style: Shinkage-ryu (lvl 14)  
\- Seamanship (lvl 2)  
\- Marksmanship: Firearms (lvl 18)  
\- Observation (lvl 1)  
\- Explosives (lvl 2)  
\- Carpentry (lvl 2)  
\- Sleight of Hand (lvl 2)  
\- Unarmed Combat (lvl 11)  
\- Negotiation (lvl 12)  
\- Cooking (lvl 8)**

**Perks:  
****\- The Will of D  
****\- Wired Reflexes  
****\- Inner Focus (rank 1)**

**Quest Journal:  
** ***** Unraveling the Conspiracy, Part 2  
** *** Supplying the Revolution  
** ****** **Carrying on the Tradition  
******* The Will of D**

**Inventory:  
\- Bananawani Teeth (x4)  
\- Bananawani Hide  
\- Fresh Bananawani Meat (x2)**

**-=oOo=-**

**Author's Notes:**

There we go, some action. The last two chapters were going a bit slow and didn't seem to be changing much of canon. Hopefully, that feeling is gone now. Sadly this chapter is a few thousand words shorter than planned. I wanted to have a bigger fight scene, but the logistics just didn't work without feeling contrived. I promise the next chapter will feature Kohza fighting someone of consequence. Probably someone familiar as well.

Also, hopefully I didn't disappoint with the perks. I wanted to leave several avenues of interesting advancement, but eventually I just ran out of ideas. I figure any perks I want to add later can be retconned as being invisible due to lacking the proper prerequisites.

What are your thoughts on changing Kohza's full name to "Kohza D. Jakkaru"? I kind of planned the change to answer the question of why Kohza will set out to sea (besides the plot hook that I will provide in a couple chapters). Because those who bear middle name the "D." just can't help themselves. They can't settle down when the world still needs them.


	4. Chapter 4 - Questions and Answers

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece. I own the whole thing! Mwahahaha! Now I'll have to invest my new found wealth. Oh, subprime mortgages, those sound promising...

**PLAYER ONE PIECE**

**Chapter 4 - Questions and Answers**

_Kebi's eyes widened. "What?... The King? Why would he fake your death?" As he turned toward his commander, he realized the man wasn't listening. He was simply staring a window visible only to himself._

_[Title Update - 'Leader of the Alabasta Revolution' has changed to 'Martyr of the Alabasta Revolution']_

_With worry etched on his face, Kohza turned, "I think we need to leave."_

**-=oOo=-**

**Approaching Alubarna**

The horses panted hard as sweat poured down their necks. They were desert horses, but the breakneck pace was wearing them down with worrying speed. There wasn't time to consider the risks of losing a mount halfway there. Minutes would mean lives on both sides.

Kohza and Kebi raced across the hard desert ground toward the capital city. It was ironic that they were counting on the moisture present in the ground around Alubarna to keep the sand dunes at bay. The exhausted horses would not have made it another mile under those conditions before at least collapsed in exhaustion or sprained an ankle.

Even at speed, the steps of the capital were still an hour away. As a veteran horseman, it was easy to let his mind wander to more pressing worries. Like trying to make sense of the mess he was in. It's not as if he set out to be a rebel leader. He and his friends just wanted to make the King hear them, when it seemed the man was content to steal the rain. The clean water, the means by which they kept their crops. The main branch of the Sandora River wasn't always the only river in Alabasta. Just the only one left.

His father told him to trust the King. That the man was innocent, despite the damning evidence. Even this morning, he found it hard to see how that could be possible, but then this morning he wasn't dead. A martyr to a cause, he was coming to understand, that he no longer believed in.

On the horizon, the outline of the massive raised city of Alubarna came into focus. The only place in Alabasta where you wouldn't need to sweep the sand out of your home in the morning. It was difficult to push past the distrust he'd built up over the last few years to remember the man who was kind to him as a child. Though, with the news of his own impersonator, it was getting startlingly easy to imagine that they might both be moving to another man's drumbeat.

Baroque Works. Mr. 0. Who were they?

The monotony of traveling and the impossibility of the situation worked to distract him, and it seemed not half the required time had passed before they approached the city exterior. A massive staircase led up to the city proper.

At the base of the stairs stood two figures. A royal guardsman and, from her clothing, a rebel woman. It was more than a little encouraging to see that they weren't locked in combat as he and Kebi approached. Instead, they appeared to be waiting for them.

"Commander!" The rebel woman called out. Her dark brown robes were parted at the front just enough to expose a trim figure with golden reflections glinting from the shade cast by the robes themselves. While he'd never been accused of being a lecher, he was surprised not to recognize her certainly memorable body, but as he slowed his mount, the words above her head became more clear. Even at this distance he could make them out enough for his blood to run cold.

**[Baroque Works Frontier Agent]  
****Miss Mother's Day, LV16**

Sure enough, a glance at the royal guardsman revealed a similarly distressing message.

**[Baroque Works Frontier Agent]  
****Mr. 6, LV13**

They must be hear to delay him from interfering with the attack. Or, perhaps, to stop him entirely. Taking a gamble, Kohza spurred his steed to a full gallop across the packed dirt and sand. Neither figure moved to intercept him and doubts assailed him. Was he wrong? It didn't matter, he supposed. He had to-

*BOOOM!*

\- An explosion threw him up and away, the force flipping him end over end to land harshly on the ground, knocking the wind out of him.

Kohza blinked at the clear sky above him. His ears rang, demanding his attention and telling him nothing. Turning his head only revealed a large lump of pale brown, streaked with dark stripes. Crawling to his knees, he looked over the body and saw that it was his horse. Most of his horse. The animal's face twitched as it bled out, but it seemed as breathless as him.

His senses returned, as if waking up from a deep sleep. The two agents hadn't moved from their position, though the man had a smirk he could see even from 20 meters. Kebi was flat on his back a ways behind him with his horse galloping off into the desert. Spooked by the explosion, no doubt.

A more careful survey of the ground around him revealed much more. Landmines. Probably hundreds of them. Silvery metallic discs were strewn about in the sand, many likely uncovered by the explosion that killed his horse, but not so close together that he couldn't navigate it.

"Hoohoohahaha!" The man dressed as a royal guard skipped forward without a care. "I was hoping we'd make good first impression! Is that him, Miss Mother's Day?"

The woman had a smooth gait when she walked that in any other circumstance would be highly distracting. "That is him, Mr. 6. I wonder, though. How did he know to be wary of us? Commander, I'm overcome with curiosity. How did you know that Mr. Love was a spy?" Rather than the sarcastic manner he expected, she had said 'commander' quite sincerely. He could

"Not that it will matter shortly. Once we complete our mission, we won't need these itchy clothes any longer! In fact…" With a flourish, he whipped off the guard uniform to fall in a pile behind him. Clad in a dark green suit and purple tie, Kohza had trouble imagining the flamboyant man as the nondescript guard from moments ago. Tapping the inside of a circle caused a popping sound as a similarly green top hat was unfolded and placed on his head.

Kohza realized with a start that the man had closed to within 10 paces during the display. With one more exaggerated gesture the man bowed. "It is an honor to meet the leader of Alabasta's rebel army. Wait, isn't it martyr now?"

"Indeed." The banter between the two of them continued without any required input from the person they were ostensibly talking to. "Kohza Jakkaru, martyr. And mystery." The woman shrugged off her own robes with a pleasant smile. Underneath, she wore a skimpy outfit of red silk, exposing her arms and belly to the sun. The outfit was trimmed with hundreds of golden discs, glinting in the light as she moved. It was easy to miss the brace of knives tucked into the fabric and loaded into straps around either leg.

"Well then," repeating the gesture, he picked up one corner of his cape and bowed again, "It is honor to meet you, Kohza Jakkaru. Martyr."

*CHINK!*

**[Gained 1 rank in Sword Style: Shinkage-ryu]**

Kohza stared at the blade in front of his face, surprised to find it in his hands at all. Glancing past he saw Mr. 6's disappointed face as smoke wafted through a small hole in the cape draped in front of his body. He shot at me! Did he deflect the bullet with his Wired Reflexes perk? That was amazing!

Feeling his confidence building, Kohza gave the pair a hard look. "I'm sorry to disappoint, but rumors of my demise have been exaggerated." He wasn't sure where the snark came from, but it was nice to feel like this was becoming more like a fight than an ambush. Stepping wide of a half-exposed landmine, Kohza circled the pair to reach Kebi's position. His friend had fully recovered and had a pistol trained on the Frontier Agents, but neither seemed to pay him much mind.

Miss Mother's Day leapt between them before they could regroup making a chastising gesture with her finger.

"Hoohoohahaha!" Mr. 6 charged Kohza with a large wooden mallet cocked back over his shoulder. Kohza just had time to see the man's disgruntled partner turn towards Kebi before he focused on his attacker. The woman's level was higher than his own, but she seemed much less aggressive. Hopefully Kebi could buy enough time for him to beat this guy.

Sliding to a stop in front of Kohza, Mr. 6 swung the mallet with a manic grin on his face. More in control this time, Kohza brought his blade up and lopped off the head of the mallet. His counter slash missed short as Mr. 6 frantically leapt backward as the mallet head thumped into the sand at Kohza's feet.

The manic grin on Mr. 6's face was more than a little unsettling. "If I drink, I die. If I eat, I live. What am I?"

What? Kohza stared at the green-suited man uncomprehendingly.

"Come on, it's not fun if you don't try to guess. What am I?"

Taking up a defensive stance, Kohza worked at trying to figure out what the man's game was. "Uh… fire?"

*BOOOM!*

Pushing against the ground, Kohza lifted his head to shake the sand out of his hair. Turning toward his opponent, he quickly rolled to the side to avoid a musket round digging a hole in the impression he'd left. Snatching up the hilt of his blade, Kohza popped back up to his feet. As he took in the situation, something clicked in his mind. The mallet head. A bomb?

"Kapow!" The man danced about throwing his hands out wide. "Hoo hoo hoo… you're a tough one. I figured that'd be more than enough to finish you off."

With a growl, Kohza charged, his longsabre held low. Mr. 6 responded by jumping back and pulling another weapon from his robe. Expecting an attack, Kohza brought his sword up, but didn't slacken his pace. With a heave, Mr. 6 threw his short blade at his opponent. Slapping the blade out of the air, Kohza slid his blade forward toward the man's unguarded stomach only to have the blade dragged down harmlessly.

Mr. 6 laughed again as Kohza tried shake the metal coils wrapped around his blade. The sword had been a fake, wrapping around the first thing to come into contact with it. "I need no air to breathe, but warmth I may provide. When metal is my home, my light may be your guide."

Expecting a new attack this time, Kohza ducked to the side and yanked on his blade, hoping to unbalance his opponent. A moment later, lightning shot through every cell of his body. The muscles in his arm seized up, refusing to release the source of this new pain.

As the pain left, his fingers opened nervelessly and his blade thumped down into the sand as he fell onto his backside.

"Zap!" Mr. 6 unstrapped a blocky metal device from his back and let it fall to the ground. Kohza could see how the coiled false sword was connected to the device with a metal cable. Seeing that the man was busy untangling himself from his own device, Kohza twisted his body and kicked out at the man's leg, hitting solidly in the knee. The move elicited a uncomfortably wet crack as the man went down in a squawk.

Still a bit rattled from a brief electrocution, Kohza scrambled to his feet and moved toward the downed man only for a cloud of smoke to erupt, obscuring even the hand in front of his face. With a stiff breeze running through the area, the smoke was quickly clearing, and Kohza made out his opponent's outline. Pulling a knife from his boot, Kohza leapt forward and plunged the blade into the man's shoulder.

Rather than the expected startled cry of pain, Mr. 6 calmly asked another riddle. "I am not what I say I am. What I say I am is somewhere else. What am I?"

Having learned his lesson, Kohza released the handle of the knife and jumped backward, but too little, too late. With a massive thrum, the figure erupted into a mass of springs. Most poked out harmlessly, but more than a few had coiled around his limbs, one around his right shoulder, and one menacingly around his neck. As the shock wore off, the coils tightened, further restricting his motion and his airflow.

"Oh, I don't think you're in any condition to answer my riddle now. Hoohoohahaha!" Mr. 6 crawled up to a standing position from where Kohza had laid him out a moment ago, but clearly favoring his leg. "I hate to leave an audience wondering, so I'll tell you. A decoy! Clever, no?"

Kohza growled as he fought against the steel coils. He had a clear view of the ones on his right arm, which was most heavily wrapped. Each coil made up of thin metal tubes held together through some internal mechanism. The edges at each junction were quite sharp, and he was grateful once again for the Thick Skinned perk that kept him from being peeled alive by them. He managed to slip a thumb under the coil around his neck to open up his airway, but anything else seemed impossible in what time remained to him.

Mr. 6 casually picked up his dropped pistol and walked up to stand over the commander of the Rebel Army. "It was an honor to meet you, Kohza Jakkaru. Martyr."

*click*

The pistol remained stubbornly dormant. Mr. 6 grumbled and turned the weapon this way and that to see what might have gone wrong. He busied himself unloading a clip holding his ammunition while Kohza tried to work out some one to make use of this unexpected reprieve.

"Damnit, the firing mechanism is clogged. Did I mention I hate the desert? This sand gets every- urk!" Mr. 6 tumbled to the ground, falling over his injured leg as Kebi fell onto the sand next to Kohza's prone form. The moment of relief and excitement was tempered by the sight of his bloody friend. Even so heavily injured, the doctor crawled forward to fiddle with the coil holding him down. While it cut Kohza's arm up pulling on the coils, he managed to separate two segments long enough to slip a knife through the crack and started sawing away like mad.

Kohza risked turning his neck to see what had occurred with the woman and cursed to see her angrily hopping up and down trying to wipe sand out of her eyes. The streaks of tears and makeup down her cheeks were visible even from 30 paces.

*SNAP* The coil wrapped twice around his arm fell limp. With the freedom of his arm returned, he pried open another segment, allowing Kebi to use both hands and making much quicker work of it. Within seconds he was free, armed and standing protectively over his heavily bleeding friend.

Mr. 6 frantically dropped his pistol and reached into his cloak, but Kohza had had enough of that. Three quick steps closed the distance and Kohza slashed across at the man's neck forcing him duck, only to catch a left-handed hammer fist to the back of his head and dropping like a sack of potatoes.

**[Gained 1 rank in Unarmed Combat]**

"I am growing less concerned with your friend's safety by the moment, commander." Miss Mother's Day had squared up by now. Her right hand continued to dab at the corner of her eye, but her left tightly gripped a trio of knives by the blades.

"Maybe if we knew what you wanted, it wouldn't be an issue."

Miss Mother's Day scoffed. "Are you fishing for information from a spy, commander? I'm sorry, but you just aren't equipped for such a task." As she spoke, she slowly circled around Kohza, forcing him to rotate to stay between her and Kebi.

Kohza swallowed thickly, watching as she raised the three blades over her shoulder. Wired Reflexes was saving his bacon here, but he didn't think could physically move fast enough to block three knives simultaneously.

As if reading his thoughts, her sultry grin returned in defiance of the streaked mascara. "Then again, I am not unreasonable. There are things I wish to know before you die. This seems like the last time I would have to ask, and I do hate to leave questions unanswered." Lowering the knives again, she cocked a hip out of the side and tapped a beat out on her chin with her finger. "Perhaps a trade would be in order."

Sweat trickled down the side of his face. Time was of the essence, but these people were no joke. He couldn't let whatever was happening in the city distract him. "I want to know who your boss is."

She clicked her tongue in response. "That's asking an awful lot. Why don't we start smaller."

"Then… why are you here?"

"A little vague. Humph. Alright then, I'm here to kill you so that you don't interfere in today's festivities." Smiling at Kohza's frown she waved one of her knives back and forth in a chiding fashion. "You must be careful with words. Now… how did you discover that Mr. Love was one of my agents?"

Kohza resisted the impulse to answer clearly. He was starting to gather that if he were to get the answers he wanted, he'd have to be careful. "He lacked something that the rest of my comrades had. I saw it and he panicked."

Miss Mother's Day giggled at that. "Better. Less stingy than I think you intended, but better. Ask your next question."

A glance behind revealed that Kebi was in the process of wrapping a bandage around a hole is his shoulder. "Why does Baroque Works want control of Alabasta?"

At this, she sighed. "Sadly, I do not have that answer. Not for lack of trying, but some questions are dangerous to ask outright. I'm not sure anyone by the boss is truly aware." Tapping the hilt of one of her knives against her chin, she considered. "Perhaps I'm getting impatient in my old age." She gave a sly wink. "If you tell me about your new devil fruit power and how it helped you uncover my spy, I'll tell you who the boss is. I fear our dance might otherwise grow rather frustrating."

Wary of deception, Kohza weighed his options. Regardless, he needed to trust that she was giving him the truth, so questioning whether she'd provide anything was pointless. Very well. "I ate the Gēmā Gēmā no Mi. I am a gamerman. I can see information about people above their heads." He gestures above her head. "For instance, you are Miss Mother's Day, a level 16 Baroque Works Frontier Agent."

Her smile now was eager, rather than coy. "Fascinating! I've never heard of a paramecia like that. Dangerous for one in my position. Is that why you tried to ride past us?"

"Is that another question?"

Now her smile was broad. "You learn quickly, commander. Very well. Not many know this, but I helped the fair princess discover the boss' identity. Pity how that worked out for her, but I'm grateful for her assistance. And for taking the blame. The Boss of Baroque Works is Crocodile. Some know him as the hero of Alabasta."

**[Quest Update: Unraveling the Conspiracy - Identified the leader of Baroque Works]**

Kohza cleared the window with a wave of his hand. The last thing he needed in a fight like this was to be caught reading. Ignorant of the new window, she sniffed in disdain. "Very unprofessional of him if you ask me. It is distasteful to play with one's food."

Kohza decided not to make any comparisons to their current situation as he gestured toward the accept button and the window vanished. After a moment's pause, with the game apparently over, both players readied themselves. "Thank you for keeping your word. Now I really must enter the city."

With both fists once against laden with knives, Miss Mother's Day didn't look ready to relent. "I'm sorry commander, I would love to know more about your power, but I still have a mission to accomplish. I will kill you. And your friend." To punctuate the threat, she flicked her wrist and three blades lanced out at Kohza.

*TINK!* *slick!* *TINK!*

Kohza grasped his off-shoulder to stop the bleeding. The hadn't stuck, so the blood flowed freely. He took two steps forward only to find her empty hand filled with knives once again. Where did she keep all of them?

*TINK*

Ducking to the side, two knives went wide and he only had to deflect one. As quick as she was, closing with her over the last ten paces was going to be difficult. He would need to approach this differently.

Lateral movements appeared to give him the greatest advantage. Kohza cautiously stepped to the right and a bit forward. Another step. Miss Mother's Day countered with a step to her own right, but held back her throw. He couldn't see many more knives out in the open, but she was a spy. Concealing additional weapons would hardly be much of a challenge.

A quick glance to make sure he wasn't moving towards one of the remaining landmines. At the third step, he saw her eyes back the way he'd come and a cold feeling grabbed at his stomach. Leaping to his left, he managed to keep his feet under him and his sword up.

*TINK*

Two of the knives sailed past. A thud in sand and another in something else, followed by a startled groan. Letting the anger flood through him, Kohza gave out of a yell and charged his opponent. He tracked his opponent as she moved to her left, not letting up his pace for an instant.

Dropping one of her knives into the sand, she slid to a stop, ducking under his wild swing. Turning, she moved another knife to her off hand and leapt back at Kohza, blade first. Twisting his body and falling to the side managed to dodge most of the counter, but he felt fire on his thigh as she past. Rather than take advantage of his position, she climbed to her feet and made to move toward his downed friend. Perhaps she feared him returning to the fray?

It didn't matter. With an adrenaline charged lunge from his knees, he managed to snag her trailing foot and brought her to the ground.

Before she could recover, Kohza pulled on her heel and climbed up her body to pin her to the sand. She managed to twist her body and lash out with one knife held in a reverse grip. The other blade appeared to lay in the sand just out of her reach. The first slash caught his cheek, but he managed to grab her wrist before she could stab down, slamming the offending hand into the sand. He caught the other hand reaching for something hidden in a fold and slammed it down as well.

A moment passed as she struggled, but Kohza brought his knees up to straddle her waist and slowly pulled her arms out straight, so the he could hold both wrists with one hand. She tried to latch a leg over his shoulder, but she just didn't have the strength of leverage to throw him off.

With the pause in frantic motion, adrenaline bled away, but he tensed to maintain his edge. This was not the time to lower his guard against a dangerous opponent. With his free hand, he pulled a knife from her bandolier.

"Wait! You don't want to kill me. I'm unarmed now! You're not the kind of man who would kill in cold blood, commander."

He raised the knife to her throat, but she wasn't wrong. His blood felt cold inside of him now. Cutting her throat was the practical choice, but his adrenaline was gone, and so was the ferocity. The protective instinct to make sure Kebi survived.

"I'm sure we can work something out, commander." Her voice had dropped to something more husky without being an obvious ploy. The obvious part was how her struggles had shifted to something more like writhing under him. "We don't have to be-"

Dropping the blade, Kohza balled up his fist and clocked her in the temple.

**[LEVELED UP TO 16!]  
****[LEVELED UP TO 17!]**

**[Achievement Unlocked: "Question and Answer" - Defeat Mr. 6 and Miss Mother's Day]  
****[Gained +1 INT, +1 CHA]**

Ignoring the new windows, he checked to make sure she was truly out of the fight.

**[Miss Mother's Day Looted]  
[You've acquired Reinforced Bangles, Throwing Knives x7, a bandolier, and 300,000 Beli]**

He blinked at the loot list. That was… quite a bit of beli. Not enough to make him rich, but it could have been used to purchase a lot of supplies. It took him a moment to realize that the bandolier and the remaining knives vanished from the woman's unconscious form. Well that made things simpler.

Kohza scrambled to check on Kebi. He was grateful to realize that the medic had taken shelter behind the unconscious form of Mr. 6. The knife he'd missed had hit the man in the leg. Still, he was in bad shape. Sand encrusted bandages wrapped around the worst wounds.

Kebi coughed. "Nice job..." He pushed against the sand to prop himself up against the unconscious agent.

"Are you okay?"

Kohza got a wry grin in return. "I'm a little gassy, commander. Think it was something I ate." Kebi winced at some movement he'd made.

Smiling at his friend, Kohza inspected the unconscious man under him.

**[Mr. 6 Looted]  
[You've acquired a Green Top Hat, a Kranthem P-7 concealable pistol, 250,000 Beli, a small photobook, and a partially burnt note]  
[Quest Update: Unraveling the Conspiracy - Acquired a partially burnt note]**

What? Opening up his inventory, he reached into one of the Q-marked boxes and pulled the piece of paper out. The bottom edge looked like it had been burned and extinguished. Putting the why aside, Kohza read the note:

"_Mr. 6,_

_Your mission is to guard the Southeast entrance to Alubasta. Avoid detection by general rebel and royalist forces, but kill on sight any member of the Straw Hat Pirates or the Rebel Leader Kohza Jakkaru. If you find Vivi Nefertari, detain, do not kill. The princess and the rebel leader must be prevented from halting the conflict within the city._

_Failure is not acceptable._

_Mr. 0"_

**[Quest Completed]**

**Title: Unraveling the Conspiracy, Part 2  
Reward: 1500xp received**

**[Quest Unlocked]**

**Title: Unraveling the Conspiracy, Part 3  
****Rank: ***  
****Description: Stop the war and save Alabasta from Crocodile and Baroque Works  
****Reward: 5000xp**

**[Accept] or [Reject]?**

It was something of a relief for pieces to finally come together, but that relief was tempered by an understanding of how close they were to success. How close his home was to being overrun by these people. Murderers. Thieves... Pirates.

Vivi. According to the note, Princess Vivi was in danger. She must know what's going on if they're trying to stop her. How did the Straw Hat Pirates figure into all of this? Some answers yes, but always more questions.

Reaching back into his inventory, he pulled out the photobook. The first page was of King Cobra Nefertari. Kohza still didn't know what to think of the man, but he was a lot less anxious to judge him before they had a talk. The next page was very familiar. Princess Vivi Nefertari. She looked good. Not happy, but then who was these days? He saw his own picture, along with high ranking royal guards, such as Chaka and Pell, followed by several faces he didn't recognize.

A distant explosion from inside the city caught both men's attention. Kebi glanced at his commander. "I'm not going to be able to make it up the stairs, and you're in no condition to carry me that far."

"Agreed. Will you be okay here?" Kohza glanced meaningfully at the two unconscious forms as he slipped the book back into his inventory.

"I'll bind them nice and tight. I've had to do that to patients for surgery prep, so I think I can manage it when I'm not bothering with comfort. I'm sure I can salvage some rope from your saddle." Kebi gestured toward the dead horse.

Nodding, Kohza stood and started picking his way through the minefield to the stairs. Fortunately they were pretty spread out. Probably so that the whole field wouldn't go off when the first one exploded.

"And commander," Kebi called out as he levered himself up to his knees. "Kick their asses!"

With a grin, Kohza turned back and moved toward the sounds of the ongoing battle.

**-=One hour earlier=-**

Vivi choked on the sand kicked up by the cannon blast and the charging horses. Carue slowly rolled away from her, having taken the brunt of the stampede. The rebels… she couldn't stop them. People are dying for no reason.

No! She was going to stop this. Carue made a whining noise, but appeared to be trying to get to his feet.

"Vivi!" A horse whinnied behind her and she turned away from the city.

"Usopp-san!"

**-=oOo=-**

**-=CHARACTER SUMMARY=-**

**Name: Kohza D. Jakkaru  
Titles: [The Gamer], Martyr of the Alabasta Revolution, Leader of the Suna Suna Clan  
Level: 17 (31% to next lvl)**

**STR: 20  
VIT: 23  
DEX: 26  
INT: 19  
WIS: 18  
CHA: 11  
Remaining Points: 10**

**Skills:  
\- Medicine (lvl 4)  
\- Sword Style: Shinkage-ryu (lvl 16)  
\- Seamanship (lvl 2)  
\- Marksmanship: Firearms (lvl 18)  
\- Observation (lvl 3)  
\- Explosives (lvl 2)  
\- Carpentry (lvl 2)  
\- Sleight of Hand (lvl 2)  
\- Unarmed Combat (lvl 11)  
\- Negotiation (lvl 12)  
\- Cooking (lvl 8)**

**Perks:  
****\- The Will of D  
****\- Wired Reflexes  
****\- Thick Skinned**

**Quest Journal:  
** ***** Unraveling the Conspiracy, Part 3  
** *** Supplying the Revolution  
** ** **Carrying on the Tradition  
******* The Will of D**

**Money: 550,280 Beli  
****Inventory:  
****\- Bananawani Teeth (x18)  
****\- Bananawani Hide (x5)  
****\- Fresh Bananawani Meat (x11)  
****\- Reinforced Bangles  
****\- Throwing Knives (x7)  
****\- Green Top Hat  
****\- Kranthem P-7 concealable pistol  
****\- A small photobook  
****\- A partially burnt note**

**-=oOo=-**

**Author's Notes:**

This is actually my very first ever extended fight scene. My comfort area is definitely in briefer action scenes, but that ignores a big part of what makes One Piece good. I wrote the above to be intentionally long to avoid my own habits, but I still hope you enjoyed it. I would appreciate feedback so that I can improve such scenes in the future.

Also, I hope you liked the OC villains. I tried to make them believable as One Piece villains, and to make them feel like they filled a niche in Baroque Works' operation. My goal is to use as few OCs as possible, especially in any recurring capacity. However, let me know if you particularly like an OC and I can bring them back in for a cameo. Possibly as allies, as that would also be very consistent with the One Piece universe.

Regarding Kohza's power level, yes, he barely beat a pair of villains that were weaker than the ones most of the Straw Hat crew individually beat. Right now, he's only barely powered up by his new devil fruit, so I have to give him room to grow. He'll get much stronger, and some of that soon, though I can guarantee he'll never turn god-like.

I'm also considering going back to do some revisions to the system. I just finished playing Pillars of Eternity and they came up with a six attribute system that I've grown quite fond of (Might, Constitution, Dexterity, Perception, Intellect, and Resolve). Attributes like Luck go transparently against the writer's prerogative, and others like Charisma and Wisdom tie too closely to character building. Perception and Resolve though… We'll see if I feel up for editing and re-uploading everything.


End file.
